"Mama, papa, sisters, please! I didn't mean-"

     "Shut up! Ricky, you are a worthless, little brat! Dare I say... kind! .... To it!"

     "It was a baby, dad! How could I kill it?! At least I'm saying 'it' and not 'he' or 'him.'"

      The littlest pup shivered as his mother raised the mallet. His name was Ricky. He was the outcast in every way possible. He was the only grey-furred pup in the litter, he was the only one with green eyes, he was gay, he was the runt. To make it worse, he was born into an evil family, and, no matter how hard Sweetie, his mother, and Roe, his father, pushed him, Ricky didn't give in. His older sisters abused him with a leather belt and their fists, calling him names, teasing him, tourturing him. Sometimes strangling him to the point where he was passed out from loss of oxygen. That night, while Ricky was sleeping, they tied a white cloth Gemstone found around his mouth so he couldn't breathe or call for help. They used rope that Emerald found to tie a large rock to him. The two younger girls, Sparkle and Shimmer, pushed him off a cliff into the water by the castle of Barkingburg, making him jolt awake. He struggled at the bottom. Eventually, Ricky's eyes rolled into the back of his head, so now he couldn't breathe, he was freezing cold and unconscious. The poor pup only made it out alive because he was found by a diver and hospitalized for days.

(Dogs in background from left to right- Sparkle, Emerald, Gemstone, Shine, Roe [Roe looks like Rocky.] Dogs in foreground are Sweetie and Ricky.)

      The next day, Ricky woke up to see his sisters eating breakfast. He got none of it, as he usually did 2 of every 3 days. He decided that this was it. 

Ricky POV

      Why are they so mean to me?

      They are my family!

      Tough love, I guess. Wrong. I'm a failure. I'm gonna go jump off a cliff or something.

      To my relief, no one is at the cliff I'm gonna go off of. I looked down. Oh darn. I completely forgot about my fear of heights. Ya know what? Rather than never loving at all, I'm gonna find someone who really likes me. Who accually cares for me. Who doesn't beat me up when I refuse to kill a human baby. I got to the ocean and a large plane went in. I jumped down the hole, regretting it after it was too late. Then I heard, "PAW Patrol, ready for action Ryder, sir!" Something appeared on the screen. I decided not to mind it. I found a super cool bus, and went in. I ate a treat. Finally, some food. Then I heard, "Mission PAW is on a roll!" Some vehicles were put in the bus and 23 or so different howls filled the air. I hid under a cusioned seat, but a handsome poodle mix seemed to notice. "Hey you! Psst!" I looked up a him. He had aqua blue eyes and brown and cream colored fur. He continued. "My name's Max, and I'm-" I looked at the knife on his backpack. "W-will you..." Max smiled. "I would never. I manufacture the weapons for the PAW Patrol, but I don't use them often." My stomach growled. "It's like you haven't eaten all day." I sighed. "More like days." His eyes widened. "Do you have a family?" I nodded. "You need to promise me that you won't freak out. I'm not hear to destroy anything, I ran away. My dad is Roe, my sisters are Gemstome, Emerald, Sparkle, and Shine. M-my mother..... promise you won't freak out? I'm not like her." Max nodded. "I-it's Sw-Sweetie." I squeaked. Max came under as I cried. "Last week was the final straw. On Monday, I was beaten by mom and dad for not killing a human baby, his name being Carson. They said, 'Ricky, you are a worthless little brat!' On Tuesday, while I was still asleep, my sisters tied a rock to me and sent me in the ocean to drown. A diver found me, so I spent until Sunday in the hospital. When I went back home, I got no food, again, so I decided that, you know, that was it." By the time I was finished, tears were streaming down Max's face. "R-Ryder, can I show you something?" The boy nodded and came over. I huddled in a little grey ball. "This is Ricky, son of Sweetie."